U.S. bishops urge Catholics to fast/pray for people struggling with porn addiction

September 6, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is asking Catholics around the country today to fast and pray for the intention of men and women who are struggling with addiction to pornography.

Specifically, Catholics are asked to pray “that through the help of Christ and wise counselors they may be freed to live a chaste life.”

The call to fasting and prayer is part of the USCCB’s response to the Catholic Church’s “Year of Faith,” which was called by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

Each Friday throughout the year Catholics are being asked to fast and abstain from meat as part of an overall effort to promote "the renewal of a culture of life and marriage and for protection of religious liberty."

Those who are interested in joining the spiritual effort can sign a pledge on the USCCB website here.

"The claim that pornography use has no victims is false," says the USCCB on its website about today's petition. "In addition to the harms caused to those involved in the pornography industry and those who struggle with pornography use, pornography severely damages marriages and families. As the U.S. bishops said in their 2009 pastoral letter on marriage, 'Using pornography can quickly become an addiction that erodes trust and intimacy between husband and wife."

"And because pornography use distorts a person's perception of beauty, the human person, and sexuality, it can stunt young persons' growth in the virtues needed to live loving, self-giving marriages," it adds.

The U.S. bishops direct Catholics to a pastoral letter written by Arlington Bishop Paul Loverde in which he decried the spreading "plague" of abortion.

"This plague stalks the souls of men, women and children, ravages the bonds of marriage and victimizes the most innocent among us," wrote Bishop Loverde. "It obscures and destroys people's ability to see one another as unique and beautiful expressions of God's creation, instead darkening their vision, causing them to view others as objects to be used and manipulated."

The USCCB also directs married people who may be struggling with porn addiction to the bishops' website foryourmarriage.com, which includes resources on how to overcome porn addiction and how to rebuild a marriage marred by porn use.